Scientists and engineers have long been inspired by nature when it comes to dreaming up their prototypes.

So is this what the boffins at Lincoln firm William Foster & Son Ltd had in mind when they placed an advert in the Lincolnshire Echo in 1938?

A very bizarre advert from yesteryear has come to light as we celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Echo.

Foster's placed the ad offering to pay a penny each for 60 daddy long legs to anyone who could supply them alive in clean glass jars at 8.30am on September 23, 1938.

The creatures are a type of cranefly with very long legs and see-through wings that often venture into people's homes in the summer months.

The firm stated that no more than 60 of the flies were required and that the jars could be collected the following day. What's unknown - but intriguing nonetheless - is whether Foster's ever received the insects.